the word "hologram"

Holography related topics.
Joe Farina
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the word "hologram"

Post by Joe Farina »

I read that Whitney Houston, as a hologram, will be touring the world in 2016:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/ ... 6-20150911

As an English major in school, we were taught that language is constantly changing, and that as usage of a word changes, the meaning of the word changes. Whether right or wrong, the popular use of a word determines its meaning.
Din
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by Din »

Joe Farina wrote:As an English major in school, we were taught that language is constantly changing, and that as usage of a word changes, the meaning of the word changes. Whether right or wrong, the popular use of a word determines its meaning.
Joe, I've been saying this for a number of years now. But, the holographic community still gets mad at me every time someone shows one of these events and I mention that the word has evolved and, as you point out, the meaning of any word is dependent on public approbation and not a rigid linguistic standard.

I don't know how much of this is understood, but there are holographers who seethe with anger every time I mention this; there are also holographers (who I won't mention by name) who were once friends of mine and who no longer talk to me because I don't join the drumbeat in saying "This is not a hologram"

There are even holographers who quote other holographers to justify the position of traditional holographers. A bit like an astrologer quoting another astrologer to justify astrology, perhaps?

So, while I fully agree with you, and have been doing so for a number of years. I suggest you tread carefully!
Martin
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by Martin »

Din wrote:the word has evolved and, as you point out, the meaning of any word is dependent on public approbation and not a rigid linguistic standard.
It surely has. By the way, going back in time, what are we to do about a term like "holographic will" (see e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holographic_will)?
That kind of "holographic" considerably predates things like lasers, DCG or "Denisyuks".
Joe Farina
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by Joe Farina »

Thanks Dinesh and Martin. If anyone else has an interest in this topic, I suggest googling the word hologram. When the "images for hologram" section appears, click on it. After taking a quick look at the images, my estimate was that 90 to 95% of the images were not holograms. I had to scroll a long way down to actually find a hologram.
lobaz
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Location: Pilsen, Czech Republic

Re: the word "hologram"

Post by lobaz »

You are right, Joe. Language evolves. I bet everyone connected to the Internet used "carbon copy" at least once when sending an e-mail. Though, I haven't heard any manufacturer of carbon paper screaming this an misuse of the word. :)
Moreover, I find it very funny that (at least in my eyes) most advocates of "true holography" argument with "phase", "diffraction", "interference" and other terms based on simplistic definitions of grammar-school level physics. No hard feelings, but these terms are so delicate (moreover, superseded by coherence theory) that it is actually very complicated if not impossible to draw a sharp border between holographic and non-holographic.
(By the way, Musion is not holographic :) )
Din
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by Din »

Petr, I recall we tried to find a definition of holography that would include all the techniques that uses traditional holograhy (e-beam etc) and exclude all other imaging, reconstructing and recording systems, but we found it impossible.

But, the thing I find amusing is that everyone calls it a "cell phone" But, no one can tell me why it's a 'phone'. Sometimes, the reply is, "Everyone calls it a cell phone!" Without realising the irony of the statement. "Sure", I say, "and everyone calls this a hologram!"
lobaz
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Location: Pilsen, Czech Republic

Re: the word "hologram"

Post by lobaz »

Din wrote:But, the thing I find amusing is that everyone calls it a "cell phone" But, no one can tell me why it's a 'phone'.
Hi, Dinesh, could you please clarify that? It seems there is a gap in my English - what is wrong with the word 'phone'?

P.S. Talking about weird words, to me the weirdest is a 'bus'. It is in fact just a Latin suffix!
Din
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by Din »

Petr, a telephone was a method of voice communication alone. You used a telephone (Greek: "distant hearing") to speak to someone and, initially, you got connected via a switchboard. Later, you had a unique numerical code ("phone number"). But, the point is that a telephone allowed only vocal communication. You certainly could not use it as a calculator, a device to watch television or movies, it was not a device for accessing data from distant and different telephones. It was a big black box with a dial and ten numbers.

Now, most people use a "cell phone" mostly for internet searches, watching media, downloading data etc. In fact, using it as an actual voice communication device is probably about 20% or less for most people. A friend of mine was watching her son text his girlfriend. She said, "Why don't you just call her?", to which the son gave her a withering look! No one seems to even use it as a telephone anymore, they just text.

So, if you went back to your grandfather's time, and someone asked to use your phone, and you gave him your cell phone, I suspect the first thing they'd say is, "That's not a phone".

The point is that any word, especially in the tech regime, has changed it's meaning so much by popular usage, that the original meaning/function is completely lost. Today, I suspect that most people under twenty do not know (or understand) how to set an f number on a camera, or even, perhaps, what a camera is, besides a "cell phone"! Traditional holographers today may get mad that these new imaging methods are being called "holograms". In about two generations from now, our grandchildren will probably generate a 3D image floating in space and capable of being transmitted from a "cell phone", and call that a hologram.
lobaz wrote: P.S. Talking about weird words, to me the weirdest is a 'bus'. It is in fact just a Latin suffix!
And, in fact, the suffix has become the word itself. Originally, it was called an "omnibus", then it became "motorbus"
unicore2010
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Re: the word "hologram"

Post by unicore2010 »

Hello i am new comer from indonesia as a hologram printing try to hear about holograpy in this forum.
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